Taking the Hit
by RamblingMadwoman
Summary: Ruby and Weiss get sent on an easy mission, but things take a turn for the worst. One-shot, fluff mostly. Reviews are loved!


Another story, figured I had to put something up for valentines day. Not valentines day themed, but rather some kind of serious fluff. Longest story I've written so far (not really saying much), started out as a really short pure fluff, but figured I'd try to make it a little longer. One shot as usual. Reviews are all read, loved, welcomed, and appreciated! You guys are awesome! Enjoy!

~Rambling Madwoman

* * *

"Three days?" Weiss said, confused. Ruby nodded, a smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

"Yep, we're been assigned to clear out a den of Ursa Major about twenty miles from the school. There's a small town nearby, the people have been complaining about Ursa sightings becoming more and more frequent." Ruby relayed to Weiss, her Beacon partner for three years. "Ozpin gave us three days, saying that was more than enough time for a team of our caliber." Ruby said, now beaming.

Weiss chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Well I guess we'll leave in the morning. Let's start packing." Weiss said, heading over to the shared closet to grab her pack. She tossed Ruby hers and began packing what she could fit to stay warm. Ruby packed the few blankets she could for the both of them while Weiss packed their clothes.

"It'll be pretty cold, wanna just share a sleeping bag?" Ruby asked nonchalantly.  
"Sure, I think yours is bigger so I'll pack it." Weiss said, turning away so Ruby couldn't see her blush. Even after two years of dating, Weiss still got embarrassed at the mention of physical contact. She almost never rejected it, but that didn't mean her cheeks wouldn't become stained with pink each time Ruby intertwined their fingers.

After they finished packing they worked together to finish all their current homework, preferring to minimize the amount of homework they'd return to. Blake and Yang had returned to the room around dinner time, relaxing after having returned from an assignment a couple days ago. They had a small dinner together before Ruby and Weiss turned in for the night early.

Snuggling close, Weiss gripped the front of Ruby's night shirt, a habit Ruby couldn't help but find adorable. Weiss always had to be holding on to some part of Ruby when she slept, a physical reminder that she was still there. The leader wrapped her arms around her shorter partner and held her closer, Weiss's face buried in the crook of Ruby's neck. They fell asleep easily, locked in each other's embraces.

Gripping the cloak tightly, Weiss huddled closer to her partner. The storm raged on outside the small tent, whipping their meager shelter this way and that way. The cold had begun to seep in, surrounding the huntresses buried in a sleeping bag and blankets. The howling was constant, reminding them that it could be as deadly as any Grimm that lurked in the dark. The snow stuck to the top of the tent, forcing Weiss to regularly whack the top of the tent to prevent too much from building up and ripping the roof.

Ruby wrapped her arms tighter around Weiss, her cloak surrounding them both. It was better than the blankets they'd been able to bring, having to pack light meant having to compromise between warmth and weight. She could feel Weiss shivering, despite the fact that she was in a thick sleeping bag with blankets and another person.

Despite being called 'Ice Queen', she couldn't _stand_ being cold. She hated it almost as much as she hated performing poorly in school. The scythe-wielder did her best to keep Weiss warm, but she knew it couldn't be helped until the storm passed. It was supposed to last until sometime in the night. Though looking up, Ruby was thankful that the snow seemed to have stopped.

"Why did we have to be assigned the day before a snowstorm starts…" Weiss muttered, burying her face in to the crook of Ruby's neck. "It's not that bad, it's cuddling weather!" Ruby said, seemingly unaffected by the cold. Weiss scowled at how easily Ruby was able to ignore the temperature, mumbling about how it was unfair.

Ruby chuckled lightly, amused at her girlfriend's light complaining. "When we get back, we can cover our bed in all the blankets we can find and sleep in, how does that sound?" Ruby whispered in to Weiss's ear, giving it a light kiss. Weiss felt her cheeks flush, leaning her head towards Ruby's. "T-That sounds w-w-wonderful." Weiss said, her teeth starting to chatter.

Tightening her grip on the fencer, Ruby rolled so Weiss was resting on top of her. "Try to get some sleep, the storm should stop sometime in the night." Ruby said softly, hoping that her partner would become comfortable in sleep. "S-someone needs to listen for G-grimm…" Weiss said, struggling to keep her eyes open. "Nothing's going outside tonight, and even if they did, we'd hear the snow over the wind." Ruby assured her girlfriend, lightly rubbing circles on Weiss's back.  
"R-Ruby…" Weiss continued, unable to open her eyes again.

"If I promise to stay up and listen for Grimm, will you go to sleep?" Ruby asked her girlfriend who was currently nuzzling in to her neck. Weiss gave a grunt that Ruby took as affirmation and finally went to sleep. Smiling, Ruby gently stroked Weiss's hair as she listened for Grimm, noting that Weiss began to stop shivering and relaxed against Ruby.

"Now was that so hard?" Ruby whispered, mostly to keep herself awake and focused. Though she found it increasingly hard to do so with her girlfriend sleeping carelessly on top of her, her face buried in the crook of her neck, feeling every steady heartbeat without any space between them. With a huff Ruby closed her eyes and wrapped her arms tighter around Weiss, letting sleep take over.

"How much further?" Ruby asked, genuinely curious rather than bored. They had been tracking the Ursa den for hours, the only clue that it was anywhere around them being the occasional claw marks on trees and in the dirt. Ruby was getting twitchy, annoyed that there were no Ursa around despite the town's complaints. "Just a couple more miles to cover, it should be around here somewhere…" Weiss said, slightly behind Ruby to watch her back.

"We could draw them out, make some noise." Ruby suggested, half because she wanted to fight something already, and half because she thought it was a good plan to save time and energy. Weiss thought about it for a moment before shrugging. "Alright, just be ready to attack if they're closer than we think." Weiss warned, gripping Myrtenaster tighter and turning her back to Ruby.

The scythe-wielder fired a couple shots in to the woods, opting to use a couple explosive rounds for more sound. After a silent minute, they heard a roar to their left, deeper in to the forest. Ruby fully extended Crescent Rose, Crouching in to her fighting stance. "They're closer to me, I'll take the first one and you watch my back for the others." Ruby said to Weiss, waiting for the Ursas. They didn't know how many to expect, but judging from the rumbling coming towards them, there were at least a few.

The first Ursa was a fully grown adult. It charged straight at Ruby, swiping at her only to catch rose petals in its paws. Weiss backed up a bit, waiting for the others. By the time the other Ursa had arrived Ruby was already dispatching the first one. Weiss summoned a Glyph under her feet, speeding herself up as she charged at the Ursa that stupidly stood up, revealing its vulnerable stomach.

Ruby was already on the others, her momentum turning Crescent Rose in to a blur, rotating around Ruby like a shield. Weiss watched for a second, always amazed at how easily Ruby used her giant, heavy weapon. Tearing her eyes away from her partner, Weiss dodged a juvenile Ursa, summoning a glyph to lift her above the Grimm. Dancing around it, she waited till it was looking straight up for her and sliced it's vulnerable neck.

After a few more minutes of fighting, the Ursa were gone. "Well, that was easier than I thought…" Ruby said, hardly even out of breath. Looking around, Ruby gave Weiss a large grin, lighting up her whole face. Weiss smiled back, glad that they were unharmed, as usual. As Ruby turned to face Weiss fully, Weiss noticed a large pair of red eyes behind Ruby.

Before either could say anything, a large Ursa Major burst through the trees, straight towards Ruby. But Ruby made no move to dive out of the way with her semblance, opting to try and spin Crescent Rose around to hit the Ursa, at least distract it for a second. Her scythe met a large paw, knocking it out of her hands as a second paw slammed in to her side, throwing her across the battle ground.

"Ruby!" Weiss called out to her partner, Myrtenaster already glowing red and charging at the Ursa. Though large, the Grimm lacked speed, allowing Weiss to easily wear it down and eventually land the killing blow on its neck. Catching her breath for a second, she ran to Ruby, who was propped up against a tree with an arm protectively covering her ribs.

"Ruby! Are you alright?" Weiss asked worriedly, ignoring the stupidity of her own question. Ruby gave an airy chuckle for a second before clenching her teeth in pain. "I'm fine, the thing barely touched me!" Ruby said, trying to play off her injury. But after receiving a glare from her partner, Ruby sighed and moved her arm to reveal a large gash surrounded by deep purple and black on her lower right ribs.

"Ruby, why didn't you use your semblance to get out of the way?!" Weiss asked, angry but not wanting to upset Ruby when she was hurt. "Well, if I used my semblance to get out of the way, it'd be you on the ground now," Ruby said, turning her face away. Weiss's expression immediately softened. She put a hand on Ruby's cheek to make her face the fencer.

"You dolt… Thank you," Weiss said, gently pressing her lips to Ruby's. Ruby grinned again, momentarily forgetting her injury. "Now how are we going to get you back to Beacon…" Weiss said, trying to figure out how to transport her partner who no doubt had a couple cracked ribs at least. "I can walk, it'll just take a little longer than when we came." Ruby said, attempting to stand up.

With a gasp, she sat back down immediately, the pain causing her whole body to tremble. "You dolt! You'll make it worse!" Weiss said, sheathing Myrtenaster so she could better examine Ruby's side. A deep gash ran horizontally, curving around her back to her front. Most of the area was harshly bruised, and Weiss could see a couple ribs bent in the wrong direction.

"You have at least a couple cracked ribs, and that cut is nothing to laugh about." Weiss said, mentally taking note of what Ruby could and couldn't do. With a sigh, she gently wrapped an arm around Ruby's shoulders. "Unfortunately, you're right. We're sitting ducks here, we have to get back to the village."

Pulling her up, Weiss tried to ignore Ruby's gasps of pain. "Wait, Crescent Rose." Ruby said, trying to put on a tough face. Weiss leaned her partner against a tree and handed her Crescent Rose, which was promptly collapsed and attached to Ruby's belt. "We'll go as slow as you need," Weiss said, once again wrapping her arms around Ruby's shoulders and carefully taking a step forward.

Ruby followed, clenching her teeth to prevent any noises from escaping. They began to walk at a snail's pace, neither mentioning that it had taken hours to get that far in to the forest when uninjured. Luckily, they had dispatched all the Grimm in the area, removing that worry from their minds.

They arrived back at the town as night fell, immediately moving to the nearest airship. Once onboard, Weiss demanded that they be taken directly and swiftly to Beacon. The driver obeyed, visibly shaken by the angry heiress beside him. After making sure they were en route, Weiss immediately returned to Ruby's side, making sure she was laying down and not moving.

"When we get to Beacon, I'll go straight to the infirmary and get someone to get you a stretcher." Weiss said, gently smoothing out her partner's messy hair. Ruby said nothing, her eyes squeezed shut in pain. Though she'd rather not be seen needing a stretcher, the pain in her side overcame her pride. Weiss slipped her hand in to Ruby's, squeezing gently and running her thumb over the back of her hand.

When they arrived at Beacon Weiss ran to the infirmary, returning a minute later with a nurse and a stretcher. They carefully lifted the hooded woman on and wheeled her to the infirmary. The second she was in a couple more nurses descended on her, immediately beginning to clean and sew up the cut. The rubs had to be pushed back in to place or else they'd cause more damage.

Weiss grit her teeth as she heard Ruby cry out in pain as a nurse shoved the bones back in to place. After an hour of working on her, the nurses said she would be just fine with plenty of sleep. Though her ribs would need constant check-ups. Weiss thanked them briefly, which was impressive considering the only people she ever sincerely thanked were her teammates.

Ruby was now passed out in a hospital bed, sweat covering her forehead. Weiss gently cleaned it off with a rag, leaning down to kiss her cheek. "You stupid, selfless dolt…" Weiss said affectionately, angry that Ruby hadn't dodged but filled with love considering the fact that Ruby had knowingly taken the hit for her.

"But I'm your dolt," Ruby whispered, causing Weiss to jump slightly. "Why are you still awake, you need your sleep!" Weiss chided, secretly glad that Ruby was well enough to talk to her. "How long am I here for?" Ruby asked, reaching for Weiss's hand. Weiss intertwined their fingers immediately, not even needing to think about it.

"You have to stay here for a couple days so the nurses can make sure your ribs were set properly. No missions for a couple months while you heal." Weiss said, a tear sliding down her cheek. Ruby slowly lifted their intertwined hands to brush away the tear with her knuckle. "I'm ok Weiss, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." Ruby comforted her girlfriend, quelling the fears she knew were plaguing Weiss.

"Next time don't be so stupid…" Weiss muttered weakly, almost as exhausted as Ruby was.

"Not a chance." Ruby said happily, smiling weakly at Weiss. Rolling her eyes, Weiss scooted her chair closer to the bed, laying her head down besides Ruby's. A comfortable silence overtook them, both too tired to do much else. "You're a dolt, Ruby Rose. But you're my dolt." Weiss whispered as she heard Ruby's breathing even out, indicating she fell asleep. Weiss smiled softly and followed her partner.


End file.
